Magazine

The History of Skiing

13th March, 2018Travel Intelligence

With the 2018 ski season gradually approaching its end,
many of us have already enjoyed a skiing trip, and some are already
preparing and planning their next trip. Skiing is one of the most
popular sports in the world, and it makes a regular appearance on
the travel calendar for many of our Members.

In line with our ski-themed articles of the past few
months, (which include a look at the best ski apps available), we
decided to take a look at the origins and development of the sport
so many of us love today. To pique your interest for the pistes
this winter, here's a brief history of skiing:

The Origins of
Skiing

Skiing, in one form or another, has been around for longer than
many people might first assume. Debate exists over precisely where
the first skis were used, with dispute between Scandinavia and
China as points of origin, but evidence exists that indicates
skiing has been in practice for around 8,000 years.

Paintings in the Xinjiang province of China, which have been
dated to 10,000 years old, imply the use of skis, and possibly the
first physical evidence comes from Lake Sindor, which lies
northeast of Moscow in Russia. Fragments of wooden: ski-like
objects have been found there, dating back to around 6000 BCE.

While the exact origins of the use of skis are difficult to
pinpoint, most agree that skiing in its modern form has its most
significant roots in Scandinavia. The word 'ski' itself comes from
the Norse work 'skíð', which means 'stick of wood'.In fact, the
word 'ski' is used far more widely in Norwegian than in English, as
a compound in words like 'skigard' (or 'wooden split-rail
fencing').

Skiing is deeply embedded in Norse mythology, with the god Ullr
and the goddess Skaði depicted as hunting on skis. It's potentially
unsurprising, then, that the oldest actual ski to be found was
discovered in a peat bog in Hoting, in Jämtland County, in Sweden -
and dates back to between 4500 and 2500 BCE.

For many hundreds - if not thousands - of years, skiing was
practiced not for recreation, but convenience and necessity.
Throughout the middle ages, skis were a common tool for farmers,
hunters, and warriors alike. Procopius, the principle Byzantine
historian of the 6th Century, went so far as to describe the Sami
people (traditionally known in English as Laplanders or Lapps) as
'Skrithiphinoi', or 'ski running Samis'.

By the 12th Century, skis were also commonly being used in
warfare. Soldiers riding them were turned, essentially, into
cavalry units, and they became popular and widespread in snowy
regions. Once the 17th and 18th Centuries arrived, skis were a
common feature in many northern armies, and the Danish-Norwegian
army even included specific ski battalions from 1747 onwards.

As the world became more connected, word of the use of skis
spread quickly. A notably charming diary entry, by traveller
Jacques de la Tocnaye, states "In winter, the mail is transported
through Filefjell mountain pass by a man on a kind of snow skates
moving very quickly…".

By the 19th century, it wasn't just Europe that was making use
of these 'snow skates' - immigrants to the U.S. had introduced
skiing there, too.

Developments in
Skiing Technology

The skis modern travellers might use on a holiday in Morzine are
a far cry from the bulky plank-like skis used centuries ago.
Changes in the way skis are made, and the materials used, are
arguably what gave us the sport as we know it today.

The 19th Century was possibly the most significant period for
the development of skis themselves. Prior incarnations had used
bulky, thick planks of wood - necessary due to the fact that
flexible skis meant the user simply sank. Cambered designs that
arch upward towards the centre were developed in Telemark around
1840, and were far easier to use, and more reliable.

From this point on, the focus was on making skiing easier,
cheaper, and more convenient. Sidecuts were developed for easier
turning, and new carbon-steel tools at the end of the 19th century
meant that skis could be made from hickory, instead of ash (which
was flexible, but wasn't durable).

These new skis were tougher, harder, and lasted longer, and it
wasn't long before huge amounts of hickory were being imported from
Louisiana in the States. Immigrants from Nordic countries soon
realised it was cheaper and simpler to make the skis in America,
and by the end of the century, many Norwegian ski makers had moved
production to the USA.

Other techniques including lamination and steel-edge segments
started to appear, but many were flawed (laminated panels weren't
waterproof, and segments fell apart). The technology continued to
develop, however, and by 1930, aluminium and triple-laminated skis
were being made. Over the coming years, multiple different styles
were tested and refined, involving different materials and
lamination.

By the 50s, new materials had taken the lead. Polyethylene had
overtaken many wooden skis in popularity, and when the first
fibreglass ski was invented in 1959, it quickly became the most
popular material for all kinds of racing and recreational skis (and
it's still used today!)

How Skiing Became
Popular

Today, skiing is mainly a recreational activity. It's hugely
popular as a sport worldwide, and the biggest catalyst to this was
arguably military and industrial use. The Norwegian army held
skiing competitions as early as the 1670s, while the first known
civilian race took place inn 1843 at Tromsø, Norway. In the USA,
skis were used in the Sierra Nevada Gold Fields, and by 1857,
downhill ski races were being held by mining camps.

In the early 1900s, Austrian Hannes Schneider - impressed with
the skill of skier Mathias Zdarsky - developed new stopping and
turning techniques; he used these to create the first model of ski
instruction, on which all modern skiing techniques were based. With
a new way to learn, and better materials to use, the popularity of
skiing from this point on grew rapidly.

By 1921, the first slalom race was being held in Switzerland,
and in 1924, the sport - along with others of Nordic origin - was
significant enough that the first ever Winter Olympics were held in
Chamonix (which our members can visit, during a stay in Chalet
Soleil or Chalet Farniente). New categories including cross country
and alpine were added over the course of following events.

Skiing in the Modern
World

Skiing today is very different to how it was even 50 years ago.
New resorts, ski schools, and more recently things like live
weather tracking and computer analysis have made skiing more
accessible than ever. It still remains a high end sport, but it's
one that more people than ever are able to enjoy.

Skiing in the modern age is generally split into three distinct
styles. Alpine (or downhill skiing) is by far the most popular for
recreational purposes, and it's the kind that most of us enjoy on
our holidays.

Alpine skiing involves fixed-heel bindings (in other words, skis
that don't let you move your feet), and usually takes place on the
pistes we recognise in the luxury resorts we visit.

Nordic and Telemark skiing make up the other two popular forms,
although these are a little more advanced, and rooted in the
history of skiing for practical purposes. Using skis that are
attached at the tow, but not the heel, Nordic skiing involves
longer cross-country distances, and Telemark involves a specific
style of turning, which is only possible by the increased
movability of the skis used.

In recent years, skiing has even moved off the mountainside,
with grass, indoor, and dry-ski slopes now widely available. The
sport is firmly rooted in the public psyche, and continues to be
one of the most widely practiced and enjoyed in the world.

It's easy to take for granted how this has developed, but during
your next trip on the slopes, you'll be able to ski safe with a
deeper understanding of the origins of the sport so many enjoy
today.

Chalet Farniente

Chamonix, France

Kitsutsuki

Niseko, Japan

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